The invention relates to a vacuum cleaner, particularly a wet vacuum cleaner, of protection class II, with a connection for a suction hose, with a drive motor and with at least one electrically non-conductive part. The invention also relates to a device for discharging static charge, particularly for use in vacuum cleaners, preferably in wet vacuum cleaners.
During vacuum cleaning, the air-conducting parts, such as the vacuum hose, the vacuum brush, the collection container for the dust and the like, are statically charged. The charging may lead to unpleasant electric shocks. In many vacuum cleaners, electronic controls, which have microprocessors, are used for speed regulation. Due to the high static voltage, voltage flashovers onto the microprocessors and therefore malfunctions and also damage to the electronic control can occur.
The static charge in devices of protection class I is usually discharged via the power cable to the protective earth. In currently conventional appliances in protection class II, a protective earth is not present. For this reason, the static charge cannot be dissipated if the appliance is used on an insulating floor, such as on wood, carpet, laminate, and the like.
The invention is based on the object of constructing the vacuum cleaner of the aforementioned kind and the device of the aforementioned kind in such a manner that even in the case of devices of protection class II, a reliable discharging of the static charge is ensured.